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Saturday, August 31, 2019

Chapter 26 The Second Task

â€Å"You said you'd already worked out that egg clue!† said Hermione indignantly. â€Å"Keep your voice down!† said Harry crossly. â€Å"I just need to – sort of fine-tune it, all right?† He, Ron, and Hermione were sitting at the very back of the Charms class with a table to themselves. They were supposed to be practicing the opposite of the Summoning Charm today – the Banishing Charm. Owing to the potential for nasty accidents when objects kept flying across the room. Professor Flitwick had given each student a stack of cushions on which to practice, the theory being that these wouldn't hurt anyone if they went off target. It was a good theory, but it wasn't working very well. Neville's aim was so poor that he kept accidentally sending much heavier things flying across the room – Professor Flitwick, for instance. â€Å"Just forget the egg for a minute, all right?† Harry hissed as Professor Flitwick went whizzing resignedly past them, landing on top of a large cabinet. â€Å"I'm trying to tell you about Snape and Moody†¦.† This class was an ideal cover for a private conversation, as everyone was having far too much fun to pay them any attention. Harry had been recounting his adventures of the previous night in whispered installments for the last half hour. â€Å"Snape said Moody's searched his office as well?† Ron whispered, his eyes alight with interest as he Banished a cushion with a sweep of his wand (it soared into the air and knocked Parvati's hat off). â€Å"What†¦d'you reckon Moody's here to keep an eye on Snape as well as Karkaroff?† â€Å"Well, I dunno if that's what Dumbledore asked him to do, but he's definitely doing it,† said Harry, waving his wand without paying much attention, so that his cushion did an odd sort of belly flop off the desk. â€Å"Moody said Dumbledore only lets Snape stay here because he's giving him a second chance or something†¦.† â€Å"What?† said Ron, his eyes widening, his next cushion spinning high into the air, ricocheting off the chandelier, and dropping heavily onto Flitwick's desk. â€Å"Harry†¦maybe Moody thinks Snape put your name in the Goblet of Fire!† â€Å"Oh Ron,† said Hermione, shaking her head sceptically, â€Å"we thought Snape was trying to kill Harry before, and it turned out he was saving Harry's life, remember?† She Banished a cushion and it flew across the room and landed in the box they were all supposed to be aiming at. Harry looked at Hermione, thinking†¦it was true that Snape had saved his life once, but the odd thing was, Snape definitely loathed him, just as he'd loathed Harry's father when they had been at school together. Snape loved taking points from Harry, and had certainly never missed an opportunity to give him punishments, or even to suggest that he should be suspended from the school. â€Å"I don't care what Moody says,† Hermione went on. â€Å"Dumbledore's not stupid. He was right to trust Hagrid and Professor Lupin, even though loads of people wouldn't have given them jobs, so why shouldn't he be right about Snape, even if Snape is a bit -â€Å" â€Å"- evil,† said Ron promptly. â€Å"Come on, Hermione, why are all these Dark wizard catchers searching his office, then?† â€Å"Why has Mr. Crouch been pretending to be ill?† said Hermione, ignoring Ron. â€Å"Its a bit funny, isn't it, that he cant manage to come to the Yule Ball, but he can get up here in the middle of the night when he wants to?† â€Å"You just don't like Crouch because of that elf, Winky,† said Ron, sending a cushion soaring into the window. â€Å"You just want to think Snape's up to something,† said Hermione, sending her cushion zooming neatly into the box. â€Å"I just want to know what Snape did with his first chance, if he's on his second one,† said Harry grimly, and his cushion, to his very great surprise, flew straight across the room and landed neatly on top of Hermione's. Obedient to Sirius's wish of hearing about anything odd at Hogwarts, Harry sent him a letter by brown owl that night, explaining all about Mr. Crouch breaking into Snape's office, and Moody and Snape's conversation. Then Harry turned his attention in earnest to the most urgent problem facing him: how to survive underwater for an hour on the twenty-fourth of February. Ron quite liked the idea of using the Summoning Charm again – Harry had explained about Aqua-Lungs, and Ron couldn't see why Harry shouldn't Summon one from the nearest Muggle town. Hermione squashed this plan by pointing out that, in the unlikely event that Harry managed to learn how to operate an Aqua-Lung within the set limit of an hour, he was sure to be disqualified for breaking the International Code of Wizarding Secrecy – it was too much to hope that no Muggles would spot an Aqua-Lung zooming across the countryside to Hogwarts. â€Å"Of course, the ideal solution would be for you to Transfigure yourself into a submarine or something,† Hermione said. â€Å"If only we'd done human Transfiguration already! But I don't think we start that until sixth year, and it can go badly wrong if you don't know what you're doing†¦.† â€Å"Yeah, I don't fancy walking around with a periscope sticking out of my head,† said Harry. â€Å"I s'pose I could always attack someone in front of Moody; he might do it for me†¦.† â€Å"I don't think he'd let you choose what you wanted to be turned into, though,† said Hermione seriously. â€Å"No, I think your best chance is some sort of charm.† So Harry, thinking that he would soon have had enough of the library to last him a lifetime, buried himself once more among the dusty volumes, looking for any spell that might enable a human to survive without oxygen. However, though he, Ron, and Hermione searched through their lunchtimes, evenings, and whole weekends – though Harry asked Professor McGonagall for a note of permission to use the Restricted Section, and even asked the irritable, vulture-like librarian. Madam Pince, for help – they found nothing whatsoever that would enable Harry to spend an hour underwater and live to tell the tale. Familiar flutterings of panic were starting to disturb Harry now, and he was finding it difficult to concentrate in class again. The lake, which Harry had always taken for granted as just another feature of the grounds, drew his eyes whenever he was near a classroom window, a great, iron-gray mass of chilly water, whose dark and icy depths were starting to seem as distant as the moon. Just as it had before he faced the Horntail, time was slipping away as though somebody had bewitched the clocks to go extra-fast. There was a week to go before February the twenty-fourth (there was still time)†¦there were five days to go (he was bound to find something soon)†¦three days to go (please let me find something†¦please)†¦ With two days left. Harry started to go off food again. The only good thing about breakfast on Monday was the return of the brown owl he had sent to Sirius. He pulled off the parchment, unrolled it, and saw the shortest letter Sirius had ever written to him. Send date of next Hogsmeade weekend by return owl. Harry turned the parchment over and looked at the back, hoping to see something else, but it was blank. â€Å"Weekend after next,† whispered Hermione, who had read the note over Harry's shoulder. â€Å"Here – take my quill and send this owl back straight away.† Harry scribbled the dates down on the back of Sirius's letter, tied it onto the brown owl's leg, and watched it take flight again. What had he expected? Advice on how to survive underwater? He had been so intent on telling Sirius all about Snape and Moody he had completely forgotten to mention the egg's clue. â€Å"What's he want to know about the next Hogsmeade weekend for?† said Ron. â€Å"Dunno,† said Harry dully. The momentary happiness that had flared inside him at the sight of the owl had died. â€Å"Come on†¦Care of Magical Creatures.† Whether Hagrid was trying to make up for the Blast-Ended Skrewts, or because there were now only two skrewts left, or because he was trying to prove he could do anything that Professor Grubbly-Plank could. Harry didnt know, but Hagrid had been continuing her lessons on unicorns ever since he'd returned to work. It turned out that Hagrid knew quite as much about unicorns as he did about monsters, though it was clear that he found their lack of poisonous fangs disappointing. Today he had managed to capture two unicorn foals. Unlike full-grown unicorns, they were pure gold. Parvati and Lavender went into transports of delight at the sight of them, and even Pansy Parkinson had to work hard to conceal how much she liked them. â€Å"Easier ter spot than the adults,† Hagrid told the class. â€Å"They turn silver when they're abou' two years old, an' they grow horns at aroun four. Don' go pure white till they're full grown, 'round about seven. They're a bit more trustin' when they're babies†¦don' mind boys so much†¦.C'mon, move in a bit, yeh can pat 'em if yeh want†¦give 'em a few o' these sugar lumps†¦. â€Å"You okay. Harry?† Hagrid muttered, moving aside slightly, while most of the others swarmed around the baby unicorns. â€Å"Yeah,† said Harry. â€Å"Jus' nervous, eh?† said Hagrid. â€Å"Bit,† said Harry. â€Å"Harry,† said Hagrid, clapping a massive hand on his shoulder, so that Harry's knees buckled under its weight, â€Å"I'd've bin worried before I saw yeh take on tha Horntail, but I know now yeh can do anythin' yeh set yer mind ter. I'm not worried at all. Yeh're goin ter be fine. Got yer clue worked out, haven' yeh?† Harry nodded, but even as he did so, an insane urge to confess that he didn't have any idea how to survive at the bottom of the lake for an hour came over him. He looked up at Hagrid – perhaps he had to go into the lake sometimes, to deal with the creatures in it? He looked after everything else on the grounds, after all – â€Å"Yeh're goin' ter win,† Hagrid growled, patting Harry's shoulder again, so that Harry actually felt himself sink a couple of inches into the soft ground. â€Å"I know it. I can feel it. Yeh're goin' ter win, Harry.† Harry just couldn't bring himself to wipe the happy, confident smile off Hagrid's face. Pretending he was interested in the young unicorns, he forced a smile in return, and moved forward to pat them with the others. By the evening before the second task. Harry felt as though he were trapped in a nightmare. He was fully aware that even if, by some miracle, he managed to find a suitable spell, he'd have a real job mastering it overnight. How could he have let this happen? Why hadn't he got to work on the egg's clue sooner? Why had he ever let his mind wander in class – what if a teacher had once mentioned how to breathe underwater? He sat with Hermione and Ron in the library as the sun set outside, tearing feverishly through page after page of spells, hidden from one another by the massive piles of books on the desk in front of each of them. Harry's heart gave a huge leap every time he saw the word â€Å"water† on a page, but more often than not it was merely â€Å"Take two pints of water, half a pound of shredded mandrake leaves, and a newt†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"I don't reckon it can be done,† said Ron's voice flatly from the other side of the table. â€Å"There's nothing. Nothing. Closest was that thing to dry up puddles and ponds, that Drought Charm, but that was nowhere near powerful enough to drain the lake.† â€Å"There must be something,† Hermione muttered, moving a candle closer to her. Her eyes were so tired she was poring over the tiny print of Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes with her nose about an inch from the page. â€Å"They'd never have set a task that was undoable.† â€Å"They have,† said Ron. â€Å"Harry, just go down to the lake tomorrow, right, stick your head in, yell at the merpeople to give back whatever they've nicked, and see if they chuck it out. Best you can do, mate.† â€Å"There's a way of doing it!† Hermione said crossly. â€Å"There just has to be!† She seemed to be taking the library's lack of useful information on the subject as a personal insult; it had never failed her before. â€Å"I know what I should have done,† said Harry, resting, face-down, on Saucy Tricks for Tricky Sorts. â€Å"I should've learned to be an Animagus like Sirius.† An Animagus was a wizard who could transform into an animal. â€Å"Yeah, you could've turned into a goldfish any time you wanted!† said Ron. â€Å"Or a frog,† yawned Harry. He was exhausted. â€Å"It takes years to become an Animagus, and then you have to register yourself and everything,† said Hermione vaguely, now squinting down the index of Weird Wizarding Dilemmas and Their Solutions. â€Å"Professor McGonagall told us, remember†¦you've got to register yourself with the Improper Use of Magic Office†¦what animal you become, and your markings, so you can't abuse it†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"†¦Hermione, I was joking,† said Harry wearily. â€Å"I know I haven't got a chance of turning into a frog by tomorrow morning†¦.† â€Å"Oh this is no use,† Hermione said, snapping shut Weird Wizarding Dilemmas. â€Å"Who on earth wants to make their nose hair grow into ringlets?† â€Å"I wouldn't mind,† said Fred Weasley's voice. â€Å"Be a talking point, wouldn't it?† Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked up. Fred and George had just emerged from behind some bookshelves. â€Å"What're you two doing here?† Ron asked. â€Å"Looking for you,† said George. â€Å"McGonagall wants you, Ron. And you, Hermione.† â€Å"Why?† said Hermione, looking surprised. â€Å"Dunno†¦she was looking a bit grim, though,† said Fred. â€Å"We're supposed to take you down to her office,† said George. Ron and Hermione stared at Harry, who felt his stomach drop. Was Professor McGonagall about to tell Ron and Hermione off? Perhaps she'd noticed how much they were helping him, when he ought to be working out how to do the task alone? â€Å"We'll meet you back in the common room,† Hermione told Harry as she got up to go with Ron – both of them looked very anxious. â€Å"Bring as many of these books as you can, okay?† â€Å"Right,† said Harry uneasily. By eight o'clock. Madam Pince had extinguished all the lamps and came to chivvy Harry out of the library. Staggering under the weight of as many books as he could carry, Harry returned to the Gryffindor common room, pulled a table into a corner, and continued to search. There was nothing in Madcap Magic for Wacky Warlocks†¦nothing in A Guide to Medieval Sorcery†¦not one mention of underwater exploits in An Anthology of Eighteenth-Century Charms, or in Dreadful Denizens of the Deep, or Powers You Never Knew You Had and What to Do with Them Now You've Wised Up. Crookshanks crawled into Harry's lap and curled up, purring deeply. The common room emptied slowly around Harry. People kept wishing him luck for the next morning in cheery, confident voices like Hagrid's, all of them apparently convinced that he was about to pull off another stunning performance like the one he had managed in the first task. Harry couldn't answer them, he just nodded, feeling as though there were a golfball stuck in his throat. By ten to midnight, he was alone in the room with Crookshanks. He had searched all the remaining books, and Ron and Hermione had not come back. It's over, he told himself. You can't do it. You'll just have to go down to the lake in the morning and tell the judges†¦. He imagined himself explaining that he couldn't do the task. He pictured Bagman's look of round-eyed surprise, Karkaroffs satisfied, yellow-toothed smile. He could almost hear Fleur Delacour saying â€Å"I knew it†¦'e is too young, ‘e is only a little boy.† He saw Malfoy flashing his POTTER STINKS badge at the front of the crowd, saw Hagrid's crestfallen, disbelieving face†¦. Forgetting that Crookshanks was on his lap. Harry stood up very suddenly; Crookshanks hissed angrily as he landed on the floor, gave Harry a disgusted look, and stalked away with his bottlebrush tail in the air, but Harry was already hurrying up the spiral staircase to his dormitory†¦.He would grab the Invisibility Cloak and go back to the library, he'd stay there all night if he had to†¦. â€Å"Lumos,† Harry whispered fifteen minutes later as he opened the library door. Wand tip alight, he crept along the bookshelves, pulling down more books – books of hexes and charms, books on merpeople and water monsters, books on famous witches and wizards, on magical inventions, on anything at all that might include one passing reference to underwater survival. He carried them over to a table, then set to work, searching them by the narrow beam of his wand, occasionally checking his watch†¦. One in the morning†¦two in the morning†¦the only way he could keep going was to tell himself, over and over again, next book†¦in the next one†¦the next one†¦ The mermaid in the painting in the prefects' bathroom was laughing. Harry was bobbing like a cork in bubbly water next to her rock, while she held his Firebolt over his head. â€Å"Come and get it!† she giggled maliciously. â€Å"Come on, jump!† â€Å"I can't,† Harry panted, snatching at the Firebolt, and struggling not to sink. â€Å"Give it to me!† But she just poked him painfully in the side with the end of the broomstick, laughing at him. â€Å"That hurts – get off – ouch -â€Å" â€Å"Harry Potter must wake up, sir!† â€Å"Stop poking me -â€Å" â€Å"Dobby must poke Harry Potter, sir, he must wake up!† Harry opened his eyes. He was still in the library; the Invisibility Cloak had slipped off his head as he'd slept, and the side of his face was stuck to the pages of Where There's a Wand, There's a Way. He sat up, straightening his glasses, blinking in the bright daylight. â€Å"Harry Potter needs to hurry!† squeaked Dobby. â€Å"The second task starts in ten minutes, and Harry Potter -â€Å" â€Å"Ten minutes?† Harry croaked. â€Å"Ten – ten minutes?† He looked down at his watch. Dobby was right. It was twenty past nine. A large, dead weight seemed to fall through Harry's chest into his stomach. â€Å"Hurry, Harry Potter!† squeaked Dobby, plucking at Harry's sleeve. â€Å"You is supposed to be down by the lake with the other champions, sir!† â€Å"It's too late, Dobby,† Harry said hopelessly. â€Å"I'm not doing the task, I don't know how -â€Å" â€Å"Harry Potter will do the task!† squeaked the elf. â€Å"Dobby knew Harry had not found the right book, so Dobby did it for him!† â€Å"What?† said Harry. â€Å"But you don't know what the second task is -â€Å" â€Å"Dobby knows, sir! Harry Potter has to go into the lake and find his Wheezy -â€Å" â€Å"Find my what?† â€Å"- and take his Wheezy back from the merpeople!† â€Å"What's a Wheezy?† â€Å"Your Wheezy, sir, your Wheezy-Wheezy who is giving Dobby his sweater!† Dobby plucked at the shrunken maroon sweater he was now wearing over his shorts. â€Å"What?† Harry gasped. â€Å"They've got†¦they've got Ron?† â€Å"The thing Harry Potter will miss most, sir!† squeaked Dobby. â€Å"‘But past an hour-‘† â€Å"- ‘the prospect's black,'† Harry recited, staring, horror-struck, at the elf. â€Å"‘Too late, it's gone, it won't come back.' Dobby – what've I got to do?† â€Å"You has to eat this, sir!† squeaked the elf, and he put his hand in the pocket of his shorts and drew out a ball of what looked like slimy, grayish-green rat tails. â€Å"Right before you go into the lake, sir – gillyweed!† â€Å"What's it do?† said Harry, staring at the gillyweed. â€Å"It will make Harry Potter breathe underwater, sir!† â€Å"Dobby,† said Harry frantically, â€Å"listen – are you sure about this?† He couldn't quite forget that the last time Dobby had tried to â€Å"help† him, he had ended up with no bones in his right arm. â€Å"Dobby is quite sure, sir!† said the elf earnestly. â€Å"Dobby hears things, sir, he is a house-elf, he goes all over the castle as he lights the fires and mops the floors. Dobby heard Professor McGonagall and Professor Moody in the staffroom, talking about the next task†¦.Dobby cannot let Harry Potter lose his Wheezy!† Harry's doubts vanished. Jumping to his feet he pulled off the Invisibility Cloak, stuffed it into his bag, grabbed the gillyweed, and put it into his pocket, then tore out of the library with Dobby at his heels. â€Å"Dobby is supposed to be in the kitchens, sir!† Dobby squealed as they burst into the corridor. â€Å"Dobby will be missed – good luck, Harry Potter, sir, good luck!† â€Å"See you later, Dobby!† Harry shouted, and he sprinted along the corridor and down the stairs, three at a time. The entrance hall contained a few last-minute stragglers, all leaving the Great Hall after breakfast and heading through the double oak doors to watch the second task. They stared as Harry flashed past, sending Colin and Dennis Creevey flying as he leapt down the stone steps and out onto the bright, chilly grounds. As he pounded down the lawn he saw that the seats that had encircled the dragons' enclosure in November were now ranged along the opposite bank, rising in stands that were packed to the bursting point and reflected in the lake below. The excited babble of the crowd echoed strangely across the water as Harry ran flat-out around the other side of the lake toward the judges, who were sitting at another gold-draped table at the water's edge. Cedric, Fleur, and Krum were beside the judges' table, watching Harry sprint toward them. â€Å"I'm†¦here†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry panted, skidding to a halt in the mud and accidentally splattering Fleur's robes. â€Å"Where have you been?† said a bossy, disapproving voice. â€Å"The task's about to start!† Harry looked around. Percy Weasley was sitting at the judges' table – Mr. Crouch had failed to turn up again. â€Å"Now, now, Percy!† said Ludo Bagman, who was looking intensely relieved to see Harry. â€Å"Let him catch his breath!† Dumbledore smiled at Harry, but Karkaroff and Madame Maxime didn't look at all pleased to see him†¦.It was obvious from the looks on their faces that they had thought he wasn't going to turn up. Harry bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath; he had a stitch in his side that felt as though he had a knife between his ribs, but there was no time to get rid of it; Ludo Bagman was now moving among the champions, spacing them along the bank at intervals of ten feet. Harry was on the very end of the line, next to Krum, who was wearing swimming trunks and was holding his wand ready. â€Å"All right. Harry?† Bagman whispered as he moved Harry a few feet farther away from Krum. â€Å"Know what you're going to do?† â€Å"Yeah,† Harry panted, massaging his ribs. Bagman gave Harry's shoulder a quick squeeze and returned to the judges' table; he pointed his wand at his throat as he had done at the World Cup, said, â€Å"Sonorus!† and his voice boomed out across the dark water toward the stands. â€Å"Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them. On the count of three, then. One†¦two†¦three!† The whistle echoed shrilly in the cold, still air; the stands erupted with cheers and applause; without looking to see what the other champions were doing, Harry pulled off his shoes and socks, pulled the handful of gillyweed out of his pocket, stuffed it into his mouth, and waded out into the lake. It was so cold he felt the skin on his legs searing as though this were fire, not icy water. His sodden robes weighed him down as he walked in deeper; now the water was over his knees, and his rapidly numbing feet were slipping over silt and flat, slimy stones. He was chewing the gillyweed as hard and fast as he could; it felt unpleasantly slimy and rubbery, like octopus tentacles. Waist-deep in the freezing water he stopped, swallowed, and waited for something to happen. He could hear laughter in the crowd and knew he must look stupid, walking into the lake without showing any sign of magical power. The part of him that was still dry was covered in goose pimples; half immersed in the icy water, a cruel breeze lifting his hair, Harry started to shiver violently. He avoided looking at the stands; the laughter was becoming louder, and there were catcalls and jeering from the Slytherins†¦. Then, quite suddenly, Harry felt as though an invisible pillow had been pressed over his mouth and nose. He tried to draw breath, but it made his head spin; his lungs were empty, and he suddenly felt a piercing pain on either side of his neck – Harry clapped his hands around his throat and felt two large slits just below his ears, flapping in the cold air†¦.He had gills. Without pausing to think, he did the only thing that made sense – he flung himself forward into the water. The first gulp of icy lake water felt like the breath of life. His head had stopped spinning; he took another great gulp of water and felt it pass smoothly through his gills, sending oxygen back to his brain. He stretched out his hands in front of him and stared at them. They looked green and ghostly under the water, and they had become webbed. He twisted around and looked at his bare feet – they had become elongated and the toes were webbed too: It looked as though he had sprouted flippers. The water didn't feel icy anymore either†¦on the contrary, he felt pleasantly cool and very light†¦.Harry struck out once more, marveling at how far and fast his flipper-like feet propelled him through the vater, and noticing how clearly he could see, and how he no longer seemed to need to blink. He had soon swum so far into the lake that he could no longer see the bottom. He flipped over and dived into its depths. Silence pressed upon his ears as he soared over a strange, dark, foggy landscape. He could only see ten feet around him, so that as he sped throuugh the water new scenes seemed to loom suddenly out of the incoming darkness: forests of rippling, tangled black weed, wide plains of mud littered with dull, glimmering stones. He swam deeper and deeper, out toward the middle of the lake, his eyes wide, staring through the eerily gray-lit water around him to the shadow beyond, where the water became opaque. Small fish flickered past him like silver darts. Once or twice he thought he saw something larger moving ahead of him, but when he got nearer, he discovered it to be nothing but a large, blackened log, or a dense clump of weed. There was no sign of any of the other champions, merpeople, Ron – nor, thankfully, the giant squid. Light green weed stretched ahead of him as far as he could see, two feet deep, like a meadow of very overgrown grass. Harry was staring unblinkingly ahead of him, trying to discern shapes through the gloom†¦and then, without warning, something grabbed hold of his ankle. Harry twisted his body around and saw a grindylow, a small, horned water demon, poking out of the weed, its long fingers clutched tightly around Harry's leg, its pointed fangs bared – Harry stuck his webbed hand quickly inside his robes and fumbled for his wand. By the time he had grasped it, two more grindylows had risen out of the weed, had seized handfuls of Harry's robes, and were attempting to drag him down. â€Å"Relashio!† Harry shouted, except that no sound came out†¦.A large bubble issued from his mouth, and his wand, instead of sending sparks at the grindylows, pelted them with what seemed to be a jet of boiling water, for where it struck them, angry red patches appeared on their green skin. Harry pulled his ankle out of the grindylows grip and swam, as fast as he could, occasionally sending more jets of hot water over his shoulder at random; every now and then he felt one of the grindylows snatch at his foot again, and he kicked out, hard; finally, he felt his foot connect with a horned skull, and looking back, saw the dazed grindylow floating away, cross-eyed, while its fellows shook their fists at Harry and sank back into the weed. Harry slowed down a little, slipped his wand back inside his robes, and looked around, listening again. He turned full circle in the water, the silence pressing harder than ever against his eardrums. He knew he must be even deeper in the lake now, but nothing was moving but the rippling weed. â€Å"How are you getting on?† Harry thought he was having a heart attack. He whipped around and saw Moaning Myrtle floating hazily in front of him, gazing at him through her thick, pearly glasses. â€Å"Myrtle!† Harry tried to shout – but once again, nothing came out of his mouth but a very large bubble. Moaning Myrtle actually giggled. â€Å"You want to try over there!† she said, pointing. â€Å"I won't come with you†¦.I don't like them much, they always chase me when I get too close†¦.† Harry gave her the thumbs-up to show his thanks and set off once more, careful to swim a bit higher over the weed to avoid any more grindylows that might be lurking there. He swam on for what felt like at least twenty minutes. He was passing over vast expanses of black mud now, which swirled murkily as he disturbed the water. Then, at long last, he heard a snatch of haunting mersong. â€Å"An hour long you'll have to look, And to recover what we took†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Harry swam faster and soon saw a large rock emerge out of the muddy water ahead. It had paintings of merpeople on it; they were carrying spears and chasing what looked like the giant squid. Harry swam on past the rock, following the mersong. â€Å"†¦your time's half gone, so tarry not Lest what you seek stays here to rot†¦.† A cluster of crude stone dwellings stained with algae loomed suddenly out of the gloom on all sides. Here and there at the dark windows, Harry saw faces†¦faces that bore no resemblance at all to the painting of the mermaid in the prefects' bathroom†¦. The merpeople had grayish skin and long, wild, dark green hair. Their eyes were yellow, as were their broken teeth, and they wore thick ropes of pebbles around their necks. They leered at Harry as he swam past; one or two of them emerged from their caves to watch him better, their powerful, silver fish tails beating the water, spears clutched in their hands. Harry sped on, staring around, and soon the dwellings became more numerous; there were gardens of weed around some of them, and he even saw a pet grindylow tied to a stake outside one door. Merpeople were emerging on all sides now, watching him eagerly, pointing at his webbed hands and gills, talking behind their hands to one another. Harry sped around a corner and a very strange sight met his eyes. A whole crowd of merpeople was floating in front of the houses that lined what looked like a mer-version of a village square. A choir of merpeople was singing in the middle, calling the champions toward them, and behind them rose a crude sort of statue; a gigantic merperson hewn from a boulder. Four people were bound tightly to the tail of the stone merperson. Ron was tied between Hermione and Cho Chang. There was also a girl who looked no older than eight, whose clouds of silvery hair made Harry feel sure that she was Fleur Delacour's sister. All four of them appeared to be in a very deep sleep. Their heads were lolling onto their shoulders, and fine streams of bubbles kept issuing from their mouths. Harry sped toward the hostages, half expecting the merpeople to lower their spears and charge at him, but they did nothing. The ropes of weed tying the hostages to the statue were thick, slimy, and very strong. For a fleeting second he thought of the knife Sirius had bought him for Christmas – locked in his trunk in the castle a quarter of a mile away, no use to him whatsoever. He looked around. Many of the merpeople surrounding them were carrying spears. He swam swiftly toward a seven-foot-tall merman with a long green beard and a choker of shark fangs and tried to mime a request to borrow the spear. The merman laughed and shook his head. â€Å"We do not help,† he said in a harsh, croaky voice. â€Å"Come ON!† Harry said fiercely (but only bubbles issued from his mouth), and he tried to pull the spear away from the merman, but the merman yanked it back, still shaking his head and laughing. Harry swirled around, staring about. Something sharp†¦anything†¦ There were rocks littering the lake bottom. He dived and snatched up a particularly jagged one and returned to the statue. He began to hack at the ropes binding Ron, and after several minutes' hard work, they broke apart. Ron floated, unconscious, a few inches above the lake bottom, drifting a little in the ebb of the water. Harry looked around. There was no sign of any of the other champions. What were they playing at? Why didn't they hurry up? He turned back to Hermione, raised the jagged rock, and began to hack at her bindings too – At once, several pairs of strong gray hands seized him. Half a dozen mermen were pulling him away from Hermione, shaking their green-haired heads, and laughing. â€Å"You take your own hostage,† one of them said to him. â€Å"Leave the others†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"No way!† said Harry furiously – but only two large bubbles came out. Your task is to retrieve your own friend†¦leave the others†¦Ã¢â‚¬  She's my friend too!† Harry yelled, gesturing toward Hermione, an enormous silver bubble emerging soundlessly from his lips. â€Å"And I don't want them to die either!† Cho's head was on Hermione's shoulder; the small silver-haired girl was ghostly green and pale. Harry struggled to fight off the mermen, but they laughed harder than ever, holding him back. Harry looked wildly around. Where were the other champions? Would he have time to take Ron to the surface and come back down for Hermione and the others? Would he be able to find them again? He looked down at his watch to see how much time was left – it had stopped working. But then the merpeople around him pointed excitedly over his head. Harry looked up and saw Cedric swimming toward them. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched. â€Å"Got lost!† he mouthed, looking panic-stricken. â€Å"Fleur and Krum're coming now!† Feeling enormously relieved, Harry watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Cho free. He pulled her upward and out of sight. Harry looked around, waiting. Where were Fleur and Krum? Time was getting short, and according to the song, the hostages would be lost after an hour†¦. The merpeople started screeching animatedly. Those holding Harry loosened their grip, staring behind them. Harry turned and saw something monstrous cutting through the water toward them: a human body in swimming trunks with the head of a shark†¦.It was Krum. He appeared to have transfigured himself – but badly. The shark-man swam straight to Hermione and began snapping and biting at her ropes; the trouble was that Krum's new teeth were positioned very awkwardly for biting anything smaller than a dolphin, and Harry was quite sure that if Krum wasn't careful, he was going to rip Hermione in half. Darting forward. Harry hit Krum hard on the shoulder and held up the jagged stone. Krum seized it and began to cut Hermione free. Within seconds, he had done it; he grabbed Hermione around the waist, and without a backward glance, began to rise rapidly with her toward the surface. Now what? Harry thought desperately. If he could be sure that Fleur was coming†¦.But still no sign. There was nothing to be done except†¦ He snatched up the stone, which Krum had dropped, but the mermen now closed in around Ron and the little girl, shaking their heads at him. Harry pulled out his wand. â€Å"Get out of the way!† Only bubbles flew out of his mouth, but he had the distinct impression that the mermen had understood him, because they suddenly stopped laughing. Their yellowish eyes were fixed upon Harry's wand, and they looked scared. There might be a lot more of them than there were of him, but Harry could tell, by the looks on their faces, that they knew no more magic than the giant squid did. â€Å"You've got until three!† Harry shouted; a great stream of bubbles burst from him, but he held up three fingers to make sure they got the message. â€Å"One†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (he put down a finger) â€Å"two†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (he put down a second one) – They scattered. Harry darted forward and began to hack at the ropes binding the small girl to the statue, and at last she was free. He seized the little girl around the waist, grabbed the neck of Ron's robes, and kicked off from the bottom. It was very slow work. He could no longer use his webbed hands to propel himself forward; he worked his flippers furiously, but Ron and Fleur's sister were like potato-filled sacks dragging him back down†¦.He fixed his eyes skyward, though he knew he must still be very deep, the water above him was so dark†¦. Merpeople were rising with him. He could see them swirling around him with ease, watching him struggle through the water†¦.Would they pull him back down to the depths when the time was up? Did they perhaps eat humans? Harry's legs were seizing up with the effort to keep swimming; his shoulders were aching horribly with the effort of dragging Ron and the girl†¦ He was drawing breath with extreme difficulty. He could feel pain on the sides of his neck again†¦he was becoming very aware of how wet the water was in his mouth†¦yet the darkness was definitely thinning now†¦he could see daylight above him†¦. He kicked hard with his flippers and discovered that they were nothing more than feet†¦water was flooding through his mouth into his lungs†¦he was starting to feel dizzy, but he knew light and air were only ten feet above him†¦he had to get there†¦he had to†¦ Harry kicked his legs so hard and fast it felt as though his muscles were screaming in protest; his very brain felt waterlogged, he couldn't breathe, he needed oxygen, he had to keep going, he could not stop – And then he felt his head break the surface of the lake; wonderful, cold, clear air was making his wet face sting; he gulped it down, feeling as though he had never breathed properly before, and, panting, pulled Ron and the little girl up with him. All around him, wild, green-haired heads were emerging out of the water with him, but they were smiling at him. The crowd in the stands was making a great deal of noise; shouting and screaming, they all seemed to be on their feet; Harry had the impression they thought that Ron and the little girl might be dead, but they were wrong†¦both of them had opened their eyes; the girl looked scared and confused, but Ron merely expelled a great spout of water, blinked in the bright light, turned to Harry, and said, â€Å"Wet, this, isn't it?† Then he spotted Fleur's sister. â€Å"What did you bring her for?† â€Å"Fleur didn't turn up, I couldn't leave her,† Harry panted. â€Å"Harry, you prat,† said Ron, â€Å"you didn't take that song thing seriously, did you? Dumbledore wouldn't have let any of us drown!† â€Å"The song said -â€Å" â€Å"It was only to make sure you got back inside the time limit!† said Ron. â€Å"I hope you didn't waste time down there acting the hero!† Harry felt both stupid and annoyed. It was all very well for Ron; he'd been asleep, he hadn't felt how eerie it was down in the lake, surrounded by spear-carrying merpeople who'd looked more than capable of murder. â€Å"C'mon,† Harry said shortly, â€Å"help me with her, I don't think she can swim very well.† They pulled Fleur's sister through the water, back toward the bank where the judges stood watching, twenty merpeople accompanying them like a guard of honor, singing their horrible screechy songs. Harry could see Madam Pomfrey fussing over Hermione, Krum, Cedric, and Cho, all of whom were wrapped in thick blankets. Dumbledore and Ludo Bagman stood beaming at Harry and Ron from the bank as they swam nearer, but Percy, who looked very white and somehow much younger than usual, came splashing out to meet them. Meanwhile Madame Maxime was trying to restrain Fleur Delacour, who was quite hysterical, fighting tooth and nail to return to the water. â€Å"Gabrielle! Gabrielle! Is she alive? Is she ‘urt?† â€Å"She's fine!† Harry tried to tell her, but he was so exhausted he could hardly talk, let alone shout. Percy seized Ron and was dragging him back to the bank (â€Å"Gerroff, Percy, I'm all right!†); Dumbledore and Bagman were pulling Harry upright; Fleur had broken free of Madame Maxime and was hugging her sister. â€Å"It was ze grindylows†¦zey attacked me†¦oh Gabrielle, I thought†¦I thought†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Come here, you,† said Madam Pomfrey. She seized Harry and pulled him over to Hermione and the others, wrapped him so tightly in a blanket that he felt as though he were in a straitjacket, and forced a measure of very hot potion down his throat. Steam gushed out of his ears. â€Å"Harry, well done!† Hermione cried. â€Å"You did it, you found out how all by yourself!† â€Å"Well -† said Harry. He would have told her about Dobby, but he had just noticed Karkaroff watching him. He was the only judge who had not left the table; the only judge not showing signs of pleasure and relief that Harry, Ron, and Fleur's sister had got back safely. â€Å"Yeah, that's right,† said Harry, raising his voice slightly so that Karkaroff could hear him. â€Å"You haff a water beetle in your hair, Herm-own-ninny,† said Krum. Harry had the impression that Krum was drawing her attention back onto himself; perhaps to remind her that he had just rescued her from the lake, but Hermione brushed away the beetle impatiently and said, â€Å"You're well outside the time limit, though, Harry†¦.Did it take you ages to find us?† â€Å"No†¦I found you okay†¦.† Harry's feeling of stupidity was growing. Now he was out of the water, it seemed perfectly clear that Dumbledores safety precautions wouldn't have permitted the death of a hostage just because their champion hadn't turned up. Why hadn't he just grabbed Ron and gone? He would have been first back†¦.Cedric and Krum hadn't wasted time worrying about anyone else; they hadn't taken the mersong seriously†¦. Dumbledore was crouching at the water's edge, deep in conversation with what seemed to be the chief merperson, a particularly wild and ferocious-looking female. He was making the same sort of screechy noises that the merpeople made when they were above water; clearly, Dumbledore could speak Mermish. Finally he straightened up, turned to his fellow judges, and said, â€Å"A conference before we give the marks, I think.† The judges went into a huddle. Madam Pomfrey had gone to rescue Ron from Percy's clutches; she led him over to Harry and the others, gave him a blanket and some Pepperup Potion, then went to fetch Fleur and her sister. Fleur had many cuts on her face and arms and her robes were torn, but she didn't seem to care, nor would she allow Madam Pomfrey to clean them. â€Å"Look after Gabrielle,† she told her, and then she turned to Harry. â€Å"You saved ‘er,† she said breathlessly. â€Å"Even though she was not your ‘ostage.† â€Å"Yeah,† said Harry, who was now heartily wishing he'd left all three girls tied to the statue. Fleur bent down, kissed Harry twice on each cheek (he felt his face burn and wouldn't have been surprised if steam was coming out of his ears again), then said to Ron, â€Å"And you too-you ‘elped -â€Å" â€Å"Yeah,† said Ron, looking extremely hopeful, â€Å"yeah, a bit -â€Å" Fleur swooped down on him too and kissed him. Hermione looked simply furious, but just then, Ludo Bagman's magically magnified voice boomed out beside them, making them all jump, and causing the crowd in the stands to go very quiet. â€Å"Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached our decision. Merchieftainess Murcus has told us exactly what happened at the bottom of the lake, and we have therefore decided to award marks out of fifty for each of the champions, as follows†¦. â€Å"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points.† Applause from the stands. â€Å"I deserved zero,† said Fleur throatily, shaking her magnificent head. â€Å"Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour.† Enormous cheers from the Hufflepuffs in the crowd; Harry saw Cho give Cedric a glowing look. â€Å"We therefore award him forty-seven points.† Harry's heart sank. If Cedric had been outside the time limit, he most certainly had been. â€Å"Viktor Krum used an incomplete form of Transfiguration, which was nevertheless effective, and was second to return with his hostage. We award him forty points.† Karkaroff clapped particularly hard, looking very superior. â€Å"Harry Potter used gillyweed to great effect,† Bagman continued. â€Å"He returned last, and well outside the time limit of an hour. However, the Merchieftainess informs us that Mr. Potter was first to reach the hostages, and that the delay in his return was due to his determination to return all hostages to safety, not merely his own.† Ron and Hermione both gave Harry half-exasperated, half-commiserating looks. â€Å"Most of the judges,† and here, Bagman gave Karkaroff a very nasty look, â€Å"feel that this shows moral fiber and merits full marks. However†¦Mr. Potter's score is forty-five points.† Harry's stomach leapt – he was now tying for first place with Cedric. Ron and Hermione, caught by surprise, stared at Harry, then laughed and started applauding hard with the rest of the crowd. â€Å"There you go. Harry!† Ron shouted over the noise. â€Å"You weren't being thick after all – you were showing moral fiber!† Fleur was clapping very hard too, but Krum didn't look happy at all. He attempted to engage Hermione in conversation again, but she was too busy cheering Harry to listen. â€Å"The third and final task will take place at dusk on the twenty-fourth of June,† continued Bagman. â€Å"The champions will be notified of what is coming precisely one month beforehand. Thank you all for your support of the champions.† It was over. Harry thought dazedly, as Madam Pomfrey began herding the champions and hostages back to the castle to get into dry clothes†¦it was over, he had got through†¦he didn't have to worry about anything now until June the twenty-fourth†¦. Next time he was in Hogsmeade, Harry decided as he walked back up the stone steps into the castle, he was going to buy Dobby a pair of socks for every day of the year.

Hospitalized Chronic Schizophrenia Patients Health And Social Care Essay

The present survey was designed to measure the consequence of gestalt therapy on self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder. The research design is of import measure in research, as it is closely related to the overall model for carry oning survey. This chapter deals with the description of the research attack, design, puting, population, standards for sample choice, sample and sampling technique, development and description of tool, process for informations aggregation and program for informations analysis.3.1. RESEARCH APPROACHThe research worker has adopted quantitative research attack in this survey to analyse the impact of Gestalt therapy on self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder. This attack is a systematic procedure that involves the measuring of the input, procedure and the end product.3.2. RESEARCH DESIGNThe research design adopted in the present survey was Quasi experimental pre trial and station trial with control group design. Sel f consciousness was assessed among the patients with schizophrenic disorder before and after Gestalt therapy. Gestalt therapy was administered as an intercession to heighten the ego consciousness of the patients with schizophrenic disorder.FIG 2. SCHEMATIC REPRESENTATION OF RESEARCH DESIGNQuantitative ApproachQuasi experimental pre trial and station trial with control group designTarget Population – Patients with schizophrenic disorderAccessible Population – Patients with schizophrenia hospitalized at krishna nursing placeSample size 16Tool: Situational Self consciousness graduated tableExperimental group ( N=8 )Hospitalized chronic Schizophrenia patientsControl group ( N=8 )Hospitalized chronic Schizophrenia patientsReceiving Routine nursing attention and Gestalt therapyReceiving Routine nursing attention merelyAppraisal of ego consciousness after intercessionDatas analysisFindingssReport/ thesis3.3. SettingThe survey was conducted in Krishna Nursing place, Coimbatore . It is a 28 bedded nursing place and de-addiction Centre.3.4. PopulationThe mark population for the present survey was patients with chronic schizophrenic disorder. The accessible population for the present survey was patients with schizophrenia hospitalized at Krishna nursing place.3.5. CRITERIA FOR SAMPLE SELECTIONThe samples were taken based on the undermentioned standards. Inclusion standards: Hospitalized patients with chronic Schizophrenia. Schizophrenic patients under the age group of 20-55. Schizophrenic patients with low ego consciousness Schizophrenic Patients who are willing to take part in the survey. Exclusion standards: Schizophrenia with any other physical or mental unwellness. Schizophrenic patients in acute stage. Schizophrenic patients with negative symptoms.3.6. SamplingPurposive sampling technique was used for sample choice. During the informations aggregation period 16 patients were admitted in Krishna Nursing Home. A sample of 16 patients with schizophrenic disorder were recruited in the survey.3.7. VARIABLES OF THE STUDYDemographic VariablesAge, Gender, Education, Marital position, Occupation, Monthly income, Place of abode, Family History of mental unwellness and Duration of mental unwellnessMugwumpVariableGestalt therapyDependant VariableDegree of Self consciousness3.8. MaterialThe tool consist of 3 subdivisions Section 1 Demographic Variables Section2 Situational ego consciousness graduated table ( Govern & A ; Marsh, 2001 ) Section3 Gestalt Therapy3.8.1. Section 1Demographic Variables: This is a self-administered tool which consist of personal information of the patients like age, gender, instruction, matrimonial position, occupational position, monthly household income, topographic point of abode, type of household, household history of mental unwellness and continuance of mental unwellness.3.8.2. Section 2Situational Self Awareness Scale ( Govern and Marsh 2001 ) : Govern and Marsh was developed in 2001 to quantify degrees of Public and Private Self consciousness. It consists of 9 statements related to overall feelings of Self consciousness. The points were answered on a 5-point likert graduated table denoting merely positive worded statements runing from strongly differ to strongly hold. Components 1, 5, 9 denotes Surrounding factor. Components 2, 6, 8 denotes Private factor. Components 3, 4, 7 denotes Public factor. The Mark ranges from 9-45 in order to construe the degree of ego consciousness. Reliability & A ; Validity: The dependability of the tool is measured utilizing the exploratory and collateral factor analysis and other statistical methods yielded consequences reveals correlation coefficient 0.7 bespeaking first-class stableness. The internal consistence of the three subscales is good ( Cronbach ‘s alpha = 0.82 for public factor, 0.72 for private factor and 0.72 for environing factor ) while the test-retest correlativity is 0.78 for public factor and 0.58 for private factor.A The tool has equal content cogency and concepts cogency. Administration: Initially the research worker maintained good resonance with the patients. The research worker obtained informed consent to affect the patients in the survey. The Situational ego consciousness graduated table was administered to the schizophrenic patients separately. This is a ego describing graduated table in which the participants were asked to click the options in each point as they feel. Scoring This graduated table is standardized, which consists of 5 likert type inquiries that measure the Self consciousness of patients with schizophrenic disorder. The responses of the 9 points are ranged from ( Strongly Disagree = 1, Slightly Disagree = 2, Neutral = 3, somewhat agree = 4 and strongly agree= 5 ) . The maximal mark in the tool is 45. Interpretation & lt ; 22 Low ego consciousness. 22-33 Normal 34-45 High ego consciousness.3.8.3. Section 3GESTALT THERAPYGestalt therapy was developed in 1940 by Frederick and Laura Perls in the fortiess. Gestalt therapy is a humanistic therapy where the research worker makes the patients to follow Gestalt therapy techniques which enhance the ego consciousness of patients with schizophrenic disorder. It tends to reflect a more experiential or subjective attack in bettering the ego consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder.Prerequisites OF GESTALT THERAPYThe undermentioned stairss should be taken by the research worker before disposal of Gestalt therapy. Explain the demand for the therapy to the patient and its utility. Explain the process to the patient. Get informed consent. Make a good resonance with the patient. Provide client a composure and quiet environment with good airing. Arrange 2 chairs to execute gestalt therapy techniques.GESTALT THERAPY TECHNIQUES:EMPTY CHAIR TECHNIQUE – The Chair in which the patient sits is a hot place and the chair is present in forepart of the patient is an empty chair. Patient is asked about his or her likes and disfavors towards his /her household members or relations. Patient imagines that the peculiar individual is sitting in that empty chair. Patient is asked to speak to that individual in forepart of the healer. This will better the emotional bonding and conflict declaration among the household members. Therefore, self consciousness is improved when the patient negotiations in such a fanciful manner to other individual. GUIDED FANTASY – Patient will be asked to conceive of a old event or topographic point already exposed in a systematic mode with the aid of the healer and imaginativeness is performed by the patient in a realistic mode. Devising ROUNDS WITH PATIENT- Patient will speak and mix with all Psychiatric patients in the infirmary premises. This attack will give consciousness towards the environment. REHEARSAL EXERCISE – It involves behavioral dry run where the patient function plays a new behavior that they have learned with a individual or people in their environment. This is done to cut down phase fear and anxiousness that may be felt if they feel they are non executing their new behavior right. This encourages spontaneousness and a willingness to larn and execute a new behavior.3.9. HypothesisH01: There is no important difference in the degree of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder in experimental and control group before gestalt therapy. H11: There is a important difference in the degree of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder in experimental group before and after gestalt therapy. H02: There is no important difference in the degree of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder in control group before and after everyday nursing attention. H12: There is a important difference in degree of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder in experimental group after gestalt therapy and control group after everyday nursing attention. H13: There is a important difference between the before intercession and after intercession mark in environing factor of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder. H14: There is a important difference between the before intercession and after intercession mark in public factor of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder. H15: There is a important difference between the before intercession and after intercession mark in private factor of self consciousness among patients with schizophrenic disorder.3.10. PILOT STUDYBefore the chief survey, pilot survey was conducted to look into the feasibleness, practicableness, dependability, and cogency. The survey was conducted in Krishna Nursing Home, Coimbatore. The eligible samples were recruited for pilot survey and the sample size was 5. The degree of ego consciousness was assessed among patients with schizophrenic disorder before intercession. Gestalt therapy was administered to patients with schizophrenic disorder. Gestalt Therapy was given for continuance of 40 proceedingss to five schizophrenic patients for back-to-back 10 yearss. Post trial was conducted the undermentioned twenty-four hours to measure the ego consciousness of patients with schizophrenic disorder after administrating gestalt therapy. Data analysis was done utilizing descriptive and illati ve statistics. Consequences showed that Gestalt therapy enhanced the degree of ego consciousness. Hence, the survey was operable and executable.3.11. MAIN STUDYThe chief survey was conducted for a period of 30 yearss. During the period of informations aggregation, 16 samples were drawn purposively. The research worker developed resonance with the participants and explained the importance and benefits of the intercession. Followed by this, consent was obtained. Initially, all patients with schizophrenic disorder were administered situational ego consciousness graduated table. The degree of ego consciousness was identified as low. Following this, gestalt therapy was administered to the patients with schizophrenic disorder separately for 40 proceedingss for each session with a sum of 4 Sessionss for each patient as one session per hebdomad. After 30 yearss a station trial was conducted to measure the ego consciousness of the patients with schizophrenic disorder.3.12. TECHNIQUES OF DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATIONAppropriate statistical tool such as descriptive and illative statistics were applied to analyse the information.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Promote Positive Behaviour Essay

Understand how legislation, frameworks, codes of practice and policies relate to positive behaviour support. 1.1 Explain how legislation, frameworks, codes of practice and policies related to positive behaviour support are applied to own working practice. All aspects of my job role are regulated by policies and current legislation. The mandatory training that we attend has been designed to cover all aspects of legislation such as the Children’s Act, which provides a Code of Practice to enable us provide the best possible care and support for children and young people. We also have inspections from OFSTED who ensure we are meeting, not only care standards, but also those relating to behaviour and how we encourage positive behaviour is evaluated. As a staff member I have the responsibility of recording all incidents of behaviour support and these include both positive and challenging behaviour. There are several policies and procedures in my work place relating to positive behav iour: Bullying Rewards and sanctions House rules The code of conduct forms part of a behaviour policy. It will state what is expected from staff as well as young people. It can provide guidence to staff when dealing with innappropriate behaviour presented by a child/young person. It states how to encourage positive behaviour, the importance of being fair and consistent, 1.2 Define what is meant by restrictive interventions. There are a range of different restrictive interventions. When some people think of restrictive interventions they automatically think of phyhsical interventions, however a physical intervention is not always neccessary. Sometimes you can intervene using simple techniques such as language, including body language and facial expressions, this is known as social intervention. Another is mechanical intervention, this is useful with children in their early years, using things such as high chairs and safety gates to contain the child in one place for whatever reason. Physcial intervention is a restrictive intervention that should only be use if there is clear justification for why this type of intervention is being used. Planned intervention can be used if through observation or care plans for example, you expect that a child may present challenging behaviours in certain situations, then you ensure you are already prepared for this as it may be that just having a carer sitting by their si de and placing a hand on their shoulder is all they need to sit back and think about their actions before displaying negative behaviour. The aim of a restrictive intervention is not to take away the young persons right to freedom and movement, it is to give them the opportunity to think about their actions and change their behaviour. 1.3 Explain when restrictive interventions may and may not be used. Physical intervention is a last resort and all staff avoid having to do this however if deescalating techniques such as ‘planned ignoring’, ‘hurdle help’, ‘walking away’ etc. doesn’t seem to work, then restrictive interventions have to be used when young people are displaying certain behaviours such as committing a criminal offence, causing harm to themselves or others, causing damage to property or engaging in any behaviour that is prejudicial to maintain the good order and discipline within the home. 1.4 Explain who needs to be informed of any incidents where restrictive interventions have been used. Where restrictive interventions have been used, staff must follow policies and procedures in place such as ‘recording and reporting’. Firstly staff on shift at the time of the incident must complete an incident report and inform management of the incident. The young person’s parents and social workers should be informed and if necessary other professionals involved in the young person’s life such as YOT and CAMHS (this all depends on the nature of the incident). Once the incident report is complete management will add their observations then send this to the safeguarding officer to do the same. Ofsted are always informed after any incident. If the young person or staff involved have sustained any injuries during the incident this is recorded on the incident report and on a body map as well as the accident book and RIDDOR guidelines will be followed. 1.5 Explain why the least restrictive interventions should be used when dealing with incidents of challenging behaviour. As explained before physical intervention should not be used unless it can be clearly justified why it was used, it is not always neccessary. When dealing with challenging behaviour you can use restrictive intervention such as language which may result in the young person changing their behaviour before it even leads to an incident. For example there is a young person in my care who we have observed that responds well to humour, so if he is beginning to display negative/challenging behaviour we try to make jokes with him and sometimes tickle him. This turns his mood around and prevents an incident even taking place. It is important to use the least restrictive interventions where possible as if you didnt it could lead to further dilemmas such as verbal abuse, physical abuse, damage to property etc. 1.6 Describe safeguards that must be in place if restrictive physical interventions are being used. It is important to ensure that the young people and staff are all safeguarded. Any staff that will be using physical interventions should have attended the mandatory training, risk assessments should be in place and staff should follow guidelines to ensure they have tried all possible alternatives before using physical interventions. In circumstances where physical interventions are being used, staff should assess the situation first to ensure it is safe to do so, is there enough staff? Is the environment they’re in safe and appropriate for the use of physical interventions? Staff must always disengage throughout the physical intervention to give the young person opportunity to calm and take back control. 2. Understand the context and use of proactive and reactive strategies. 2.1 Explain the difference between proactive and reactive strategies. Proactive strategies are strategies that everyone may use to deal with behavioural problems, they are strategies that are written in policies and procedures, risk assessments, care plans etc. These are guidelines that are in place to be followed when a child/young person is presenting challenging behaviour even if these strategies are not proven to work as well as others for this particular child/young person. Examples of proactive strategies are having rules and boundaries in place, this is a way of letting the child/young person know the way they should be behaving, give praise to the child/young person for good behaviour and put sanctions and consequences in place when rules are broken. Reactive strategies are the behaviour management strategies that you use at the time of an incident when a child/young person is presenting challenging behaviour. Even though there are guidelines in place for proactiv strategies that should be used, if you have observed that a child/young person responds well to something else and it diverts their attention to something positive then you may use these reactive strategies to stop the incident escalating any further. When using reactive strategies you should still follow guidelines for proactive behaviour management strategies and put consequences in place for inappropriate behaviour. 2.2 Identify the proactive and reactive strategies that are used within own work role Needs completing 2.3 Explain the importance of identifying patterns of behaviours or triggers to challenging behaviour when establishing proactive or reactive strategies to be used. With every child/young person you should be making observations of every aspect of their life. When they ‘slow time’ before going to school or refuse to attend school, is there a pattern in the days they are behaving like this? Is there a certain lesson on these days they dont like? Are their children in their classes on this day who they are having issues with? There is a reason behing every behaviour. It is important to identify patterns of behaviours and triggers so that you can predict when an incident may take place and use planned intervention to deal with these situations. Also different strategies may work for different incidents and different young people. Staff need to ensure they are making these observations, updating care plans and risk assessments and passing on information to all staff during h andovers and meetings. 2.4 Explain the importance of maintaining a person or child-centred approach when establishing proactive strategies. Each young person is different, they need to be seen as an individual. Young people should all be treat fairly and equally but not the same. Some strategies that work on one child/young person may not work on another. Strategies have to be tried and tested, they wont all work but the ones that do, should be identified and all staff bare these in mind when dealing with further incidents. A young person in my care gets really upset when plans for family contact are changed or if it doesn’t go ahead. Staff ensure they tell the young person with at least 2 members of staff present incase they need to use physical restrictive interventions. The usual type of negative behaviour in instances like this is going to their room and slamming doors etc. Due to the young person not actually causing any damage or harm to property or himself, staff use proactive strategies we have in place which in this case would be ‘backing away’ giving him time to calm, and with this particular young person we would use ‘humour’ once he is calm to keep him distracted. Another young person if he gets bored will display challenging behaviour through verbal abuse. Staff use planned intervention and always try and keep the young person busy to prevent him getting bored or agitated. If this particular young person is being verbally abusive staff use proactive strategies ‘planned ignoring’ as if staff give him attention for displaying negative behaviour, he sees this as an excuse to keep repeating this behaviour as he gets the attention he was after. When the young person is showing positive behaviour, even simple tasks like brushing his teeth and having a wash on a morning, he needs lots of praise to show him that h e gets attention when he is being compliant. 2.5 Explain the importance of reinforcing positive behaviour with individuals. Needs completing 2.6 Evaluate the impact on an individuals well-being of using reactive rather than proactive strategies. Needs completing 3. Be able to promote positive behaviour 3.1 Explain how a range of factors may be associated with challenging behaviour. Needs completing 3.2 Evaluate the effectiveness of proactive strategies on mitigating challenging behaviours Needs completing 4.Be able to respond appropriately to incidents of challenging behaviour. 4.1 Identify types of challenging behaviours Needs completing 4.3 Explain the steps that are taken to maintain the dignity of and respect for an individual when responding to an incident of challenging behaviour. Needs completing 5. Be able to supports others and individuals following an incident of challenging behaviour. 5.2 Describe how an individual can be supported to reflect on an incident. How they were feeling at the time prior to and directly before the incident – Their behaviour – The consequence of their behaviour – How they were feeling after the incident – Needs completing 5.3 Explain the complex feelings that may be experienced by others involved or witnessing an incident of challenging behaviour. Needs completing 5.5 Describe the steps that should be taken to check for injuries following an incident of challenging behaviour. This should be done straight after the incident once the young person has calmed. If the young person directed their anger at a particular member of staff, then a different member of staff, preferably who the young person usually has a good relationship with should approach the child/young person to see if they are ok. Get the young person into an environment with privacy and where they feel comfortable, then have a discussion with them about if they are hurting anywhere and check them for injuries. For example if the young person was restrained during the incident see if they have any marks from where staff held them, check their back thoroughly if you recall them banging it etc. If any marks are noticed, firstly check previous body maps in place for the young person to ensure these marks haven’t already been identified and recorded. If not then record the injuries on the incident report, on the young persons body map and daily observations. If needed offer first aid to the young person or medical attention. The young person should be checked for injuries again at a later time as bruising may show the following day.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Work and Professional Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Work and Professional Development - Essay Example ting† on the basis of race, colour, gender or disability as opposed to â€Å"affirming† the entry of disadvantaged sections into colleges and institutes of higher education. The main point of contention is the perceived reduction in quality and compromise with merit that equality initiatives are supposed to bring to the organisation in a market economy. Since the very basis of any firm in a market economy is the assumption of merit and reliance on the structure that fosters a culture of meritocracy, the debate over the place on merit takes on an edge. What is apparent from the above is that firms in the current market economy have not really been doing enough to positively help the people. Instead they are just paying lip service to hiring and recruiting their employees from different backgrounds. As the following report from a newspaper in Wales shows, â€Å"Women with young children are more likely to be discriminated against at work than people with disabilities or from an ethnic minority group, a major UK equality report revealed yesterday. According to the Equalities Review, which was commissioned by Tony Blair, a mother with a child younger than 11 is 45% less likely to be employed than a man with a partner. The review has led to calls for businesses and employers in Wales to be more family-friendly and promote fairer employment practices. Chairman of the review Trevor Phillips, who is head of the new Commission for Equality and Human Rights, said inequality was still a major problem in the UK and was now preventing the majority of people from achieving their potential. The review revealed that, in a survey of recruitment agencies, more than 70% of the 122 companies had been asked by clients to avoid hiring women who were pregnant, or of childbearing age. The report fo und disabled people were 29% less likely to be in employment than non-disabled people, and that Pakistani and Bangladeshi women were 30% less likely to be in work than white women of similar

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

The Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Portfolio - Essay Example complaining letters, cover letters, and other forms of letters helped me distinguish between different forms of letters and the elements required for each form of letter. This knowledge will be essential when I apply for future jobs and the skills gained will be beneficial in future. Although the class covered many things that will be helpful to me in future, I feel there are some things that we should have learned writing about in the class. However, the most important of the things that would have made learning better include writing various forms of short plays that we could act during class. This way, we could achieve a lot us a class in terms of learning about the differences in culture and we would have a chance of improving on the quality of our writing. By exchanging the scripts that we will have written, our classmates can correct grammatical mistakes and styles of writing in our work. Consequently, this approach will not only help us gain self-confidence, but it will also help us in improving out proficiency in

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Critical Thinking paper in Health Care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Critical Thinking paper in Health Care - Essay Example When he was experienced the creativity decreases, which makes him apply his known and time tested strategies and techniques he found successful. This is in general but not be certainly Work setting depends upon nature of work and work place. If the nature of work is individual one has enough free hand to set it according to his convenience. For instance, a teacher in a school can work according to his own plan and setting regarding his duties in class room and correction of Answer sheets. But in the case of a marketing executive it depends on his superiors, subordinates and the clients he has to meet and melt. When it comes to the work in a back office it depends on the work culture of that office and the nature and pace of doing work of his colleagues. The situation is different in case of front office. There, the work setting depends upon the people they meet and talk. All the aforesaid cases are the instances of subordinate services. If one has to lead a team (smaller or bigger) he has to plan every thing in advance and must be able to guide his team mates. Here the work setting needs a good home work, alertness and planning. When one member abstains from work or will take leave, the work setting depends on the team leader.

Monday, August 26, 2019

2012 London Olympic Games Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

2012 London Olympic Games - Case Study Example Among these broad categories that were considered is the sporting events that will be in and around London, the global appeal of individual sports, local appeal of a particular sport that is influenced by UK’s past success on the sport, and event stages where awards will be issued. In addition, influential teams or athletes that have a lot of influence also impacted on the pricing for particular events they were participating in and lastly, the pricing strategies for past Olympics was also considered during the pricing for London Olympics (Gourville and Bertini, 8). Based on the experience that Williamson had on pricing for events, he knew that it would be easy to sell highly priced tickets during the opening ceremony, finals for particular events, and during the closing ceremony. However, the biggest headache was selling tickets for ‘not-so-popular events’ such as handball, archery, and table tennis, especially during the preliminary rounds. Besides this fact, Williamson was also faced with the challenge of setting prices for individual sports (Gourville and Bertini, 1). However, it is important to note that the severity of the challenge varied with nature of the sport, for example, it was not challenging task to set the prices for swimming events as compared to handball events. For the most popular events, which comprised of swimming, artistic gymnastics, and athletics, the prices of the tickets during the preliminary rounds was expected to remain at a high level during the entire period but they were expected to be at their peak (highest price) during the finals and award ceremony of the sport. Additionally, ticket prices for individual sports also varied depending on the seating arrangement i.e. seats that were close to the playing field were highly priced than seats at the far back end of the playing field. Sports that had influential personalities who were widely known across the World

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Renaissance Period Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Renaissance Period - Essay Example Mother and child is a recurring image in all religions because this image is the most powerful visual sign that takes the beholder to the roots of his/her origin. The drawing, reliefs, and sculptures of mother and child by Michelangelo stand out among numerous works based on the same theme with their unconventional approach. Art critics† have observed, †Michelangelo reinforces the unity of mother and child through their shared nakedness,† referring to the drawing in which both Madonna and the child are depicted naked. The emotions that exude in all these works have been described as divine greatness and exalted grief. In the sculpture by Michelangelo, with the same theme, the mother looks down sadly as if she knows about the fate of her child. This was a departure from the earlier works on the same subject in which the mother invariably smiled upon the child. In â€Å"The Four Seasons†, it seems Vivaldi is painting with poetry and singing with the sounds of n ature. In the spring sonnet, we hear the birds, the streams, the wind, the thunderstorms, the rustling leaves and of course the silences in between. The rustic bagpipes are sounded then predicting the arrival of summer, the festive season. In the summer sonnet, the cuckoo’s voice is heard as a cool breeze that passes by over the scorching pines, sweltering men, and flocks and the blazing sun. The north wind indicates an upcoming season change again. Wiping away the anticipation of devastation, then, autumn arrives.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Endangered Species Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Endangered Species - Research Paper Example -Many organizations are working together to ensure that these species do not get extinct. Endangered Species As the world is developing it is seen that several conflicts have arisen within the environment itself. These conflicts relate to the loss of natural surroundings such as the rain forests and Arctic ice. Moreover another trend which has been related to the development of the world is related to the extinction of certain species existing in the world. The organisms or species which are at risk of extinction are known as the endangered species. These species are the ones who are believed to get extinct because of the environmental and human factors involved. The species getting extinct are not limited to the developing nations of India and Pakistan but also spread to the developed world. It is for this purpose that many organizations have been formed all over the world to decrease the number of endangered species all over the world. The International Union for Conservation of Na ture is one organization dedicated to find solution to decrease the effect of environment on the endangered species. In 2010 the IUCN estimated the figures of the endangered species to be around 33 to 39% of all the species living in the world. This essay would further revolve on the aspects of the endangered species and would put forward the environmental effects that these endangered species pose in the society (IUCN 2011; WWF 2011). Periods of Endangered Species The extinction of the species dates back to many centuries when the dinosaurs and other such species existed. A Permian extinction is noted down to be dated back to around 250 million years when around 70% of the terrestrial animals along with 96% of the marine animals vanished. Similarly the age of dinosaurs came to an end because of the Cretaceous extinction which took place around 65 million years back. And when the experts analyze the current situation of the world it is seen that a great part of the species still rem ains endangered and this can create an extinction wave to occur all over again. The number of endangered species are increasing everyday because of the environmental and human factors involved at every stage. Earth is being developed at a rapid rate and this is creating difficulties for the species to survive. It is at this point that many states have realized the importance of the endangered species and have created laws to minimize the number of these species (Walsh 2009). Problems faced by the endangered species The endangered species are the most at risk when it comes to the issue of extinction. Extinction of this species can not only affect the habitat of the species but can also affect the ecosystem as a whole. An ecosystem can remain stable if all the species in it remain in a balanced environment. Thus a balanced ecosystem is necessary for the survival of everyone involved within the pyramid of the system. Human beings are involved with the ecosystem and thus they should mak e sure that the endangered species do not get extinct. Human factors are affecting the endangered species in different forms. Some experts relate the endangered species to the varying environment of the world which includes the climate. Climate change is being witnessed all over the world and this is harming the integrity of the species living in a habitat. However this climate change can be directly linked to the factors contributed by the human beings.

Friday, August 23, 2019

Emotional and Behavior Disorders Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Emotional and Behavior Disorders - Assignment Example This study stresses that emotional or behavioral disorders are classified into three groups, namely: internalizing factors, low incidence disorder and externalizing. Behavior disorders can also be inherited through an individual’s genes or because of a chemical imbalance in one’s brain because of an injury sustained in the brains. Youth exposed to violence, death of a family member(s), abuse and extreme stress are also prone to suffering from behavior and emotional disorders. 8 emotional and behavioral disorders Characteristics/Traits Commonly Used Medications Recommended Therapeutic Interventions Recommended Educational Interventions Disorder Name: Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)       From this paper it is clear that the affected child is unable to pay attention to anything. The affected child is easily distracted and not constantly active. The child is not still. The use of stimulant and non-stimulant medications like atomoxetine are normally recomm ended. Induced psychosis in methylphenidate is also recommended as medication. Lisdexamfetamin, Dextroamphetamine, Amphetamine-Dextroamphetamine are also the common medication. The Team Approach should be effectively used in which the parents, therapist, psychologist, teachers and the school, and physician should work together to focus on interventions, like consistent use of reward systems, techniques and schedules to help in mastering of skills. People should be made aware of the causes of these conditions and preventive measures put in place to prevent occurrence. Treatment should also be sought as early as possible for people who are affected. Disorder Name: Severe Depression       Loss of concentration in normal activities. The affected child experiences changes in appetite and feels hopeless. Lack of value towards life which may lead to destructive behaviors and suicide. Various antidepressants are used in the treatment of depression and conditions related to depression. T hey include Tricyclic antidepressant, Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors, Selective Serotonin Inhibitors reuptake inhibitors and Serotin & norepinephrine Inhibitors. Interpersonal Therapies and cognitive behavioral therapies should be used in the treatment of severe depression. People should be made aware of the causes of these conditions and preventive measures put in place to prevent occurrence. Treatment should also be sought as early as possible for people who are affected. Disorder Name: Eating Disorders      

How historians make use of other social sciences Essay

How historians make use of other social sciences - Essay Example By tradition and definition, history requires certain written records which can be evaluated and reviewed. Verbal or the oral history often gets lost and the historians or the interested professionals try to understand the history through folklores and myths where there is no written account. History has normally been understood as common memory of the people that provides with the detailed account of the past. The subject also imprisons shared experiences, values and ideas and helps one to analyze the past to figure out the future ideas, experiences and values. The tools offered by the social sciences are â€Å"behind† or â€Å"beneath† historical institutions, ideas and events (dimensions of economic change, social inequality, population growth and mobility, social protest, behavior and mass attitude and voting patterns) (Robinson,†History†). As discussed earlier, history is an amalgamation of various other subjects particularly social sciences. Also, the trend among the historians suggests that the scholars of history have used other disciplines of social science within the periphery of the gamut of history. The scholars of the field often used other related subjects like geography, political science, law and economics in order to analyze the historical events. The scholars of the subject believe that without inculcating other social sciences, historical events cannot be understood in the right and the best spirit. According to the school of thought, one must know about the political happenings or the geographical particulars of any area or person before knowing the history of the person or of the area. Such inculcation provides wider spectrum and helps a lot to understand the exact scheme of things that had occurred long back. Many of the scholars are of the view that such usage of other social science subjects with in the domain of history is because of the fact that all of the social science subjects are inter –

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Operations Management Zellers Essay Example for Free

Operations Management Zellers Essay What competitive priority is important for a discount store, such as Zellers? Cost is the most important competitive priority for a discount store, such as Zellers. In order to perform competitively as a discount store, the organization must emphasize low operating costs. With this priority, Zellers can produce at low costs in comparison to competitors and offer products at low prices in order to meet consumer needs and become an order winner. 2. Three generic strategies are low cost, niche market, and product differentiation. What one of these strategies was Zellers using before 1998? After 1998? Prior to 1998, Zellers was using a low cost strategy. The company targeted budget-minded consumers with the slogan Where the Lowest Price is the Law. In the face of fierce rivalry from WalMart entering the competitive landscape and various operational shortcomings, Zellers made several strategic decisions and changes. After 1998, Zellers was using a niche market strategy, by adjusting its mission to become a moms store. Zellers focused on offering fair value to consumers, as opposed to the lowest price. The company moved away from the low cost dynamic of its self-service policy by investing in labour, having several customer service assistants on the floor. It also focused on investing in more famous brands and private label products. To the companys detriment, it appears that Zellers made these strategic changes in order to compete more directly with WalMart, as they moved away from discounts towards offering everyday low prices on 95% of its merchandise.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The History Of Travel Agencies

The History Of Travel Agencies Travel agencies exist mainly as intermediaries among suppliers of travel services such as carriers and hotels, and customers. Travel agencies do not deal with tangible products but with information where it is different from other distributors in many industries (Cheung Lam, 2009). As for the travel agent it is best defined as an individual who undertakes a work for another individual, who is being the principal. The principal in such an affiliation not only sets the aims of the work, such as selling tickets, however can also control the means and way in which the work is completed (Cheung Lam, 2009). Cheung Lam (2009) added that modifications in the business over the past ten years have affectedly changed the environment and significance of info in the travel industry and, subsequently, the role of travel agency. Lately, the technology advancement has brought changes in tourism industry. Why did the Internet so affectedly affect the travel industry? What impact do the changes have on travelers? (Harrell Associates, 2002). The Internet has revolutionized the method in which customers make their travel choices (Anon, 2012). Customers nowadays have several additional selections because the Internet offers providers additional chances to generate direct customer relations and allows a varied range of pricing (Harrell Associates, 2002). The Internet offers an influential atmosphere for the conception of virtual representations of tourism destinations permitting indirect experience that really exceeds the potentials of traditional travel agents (Bogdanovych, Berger, Simoff Sierra, 2005). Currently the Internet is the perfect connection among customers and dealers, over hundreds of websites, travelers have sufficient information for their travel preparation (Ortega, 2008). According to Travel Indus try Association of America (TIA) over 75 million online travelers used the Internet for their travel planning such as to look for places to stay, rental car prices, also searching for maps and driving directions, searching for airfares and schedules and other information about tourist destinations (Ortega, 2008). According to Ortega (2008), he said that the travel planning and booking on the Web are among the greatest popular online activities in best important e-commerce markets and online travel sales are rising at an explosive amount (over $115 billion this year) in the US, Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions. Therefore, because of the growing of the e-commerce in the tourism industry, the tourists have numerous selections provided by the Internet to obtain online, in the ease of their houses or offices, touristic services and products (Ortega, 2008). Furthermore, the Internet assists to locate low prices in tourist services such as air tickets and hotel rooms. In conclusion, it offers tourists a remarkable total of information to make an exclusive trip. According to Vrana (2010), she claimed that a main forte to travel agencies is the capability to offer personal information and assistance to tourists endlessly, along with consultancy service for corporations and will keep on secure if their advice-offering ability remained supported by the existence of the Internet. Even though there are many online travel services, a traditional travel agent is as far a vital part of the trip as ease is to traveling! (Will, 2012). The travel industry is comprised of over a dozen related industries: airlines, restaurants, hotels/motels, travel agencies, gift shops, auto rentals, and a host of other businesses that may not be even recognized their dependence on travel and tourism since travelers are usually indistinguishable from local customers (Cheung Lam, 2009). Will (2012) also stated that, the part of a travel agent has remained growing with the eras and currently most people are reliant on them for fulfilling most of their travel plans so tha t they can rest calmly and just relish their trip. This study aims to examine the factors involves in sustaining travel agencys operation in order to survive in this tourism industry and evaluate their performance or sales of travel agency that can affected by the uses of technology such as Internet. 1.1 RESEARCH ISSUES Tourism has become the second largest economy contributor after manufacturing. One of the factors that contributes to the boom of tourism market is the advancement of technology. Travel industry are comprises of variety related industries, such as airlines, travel agencies, restaurants, hotel/motel and more (Cheung Lam, 2009). More or less, each of the related industry will get at least a little impact from the technology advancement, notably these travel agencies. There is some research that indicates that tourism product is popular to be bought through online (Nysveen Lexhagen, 2001). Online tourism has grown rapidly as the consumer nowadays are using the advancement of technology to acquire information and also purchasing tourism products and services (Dixit, Belwal Singh, n.d). There are many reasons why consumer tends to choose Internet as one their medium in purchasing tourism product and services. One of it is Internet are giving them cost-saving convenience (Cheung Lam, 2009). Cost-saving convenience means that there are no efforts required for the consumer to spend their time and money to seek for information needed about a certain package. Some of the consumers also choosing Internet rather than looking for travel agencies because of the flexibility that Internet has to offer. The consumer are seeking flexible tourism product to suit their travel needs (Harris Duckworth, 2005). Based on their research, the consumers buying pattern recently has change rapidly to independent travel from the typical package holiday. To support this statement, they are adapting a research done by Mintel, in UK independent travel has conquered the travel market in 2004 with 55%. The other reason why consumers tend to choose Internet over travel agencies is because of online experience has greater potential in visualizing travel destinations (Bogdanovych, Berger, Simoff Sierra, n.d). They also stated that online technology offers 3D interactive tours that can deliver clearer image on the destination. Interactive videos can also be shown online without interrupting other customers. Based on a study done by Daugherty, Hairong Biocca (2005) which they wanted to get consumers reaction on the product presentation method. The two choices are indirect experience (virtual presentation), and direct experience (direct product manipulation). The results proved that, product knowledge and decision quality made by the consumer are both significantly higher when they are exposed to interactive 3D products than to static products presented in a form-based way. Despite from all the factors, travel agencies which are at stake need to survive in order to sustain their spot in the travel industry. They have to differentiate themselves more than what technology advancement has to offer. Based on the statement of research problem, we want to conduct a research on how travel agencies can sustain their operation. There are a few factors that make travel agencies can sustain themselves in tourism industry in Malaysia. These factors can determine the sales of the travel agencies because the trade travel agency community has sustained substantial losses due to the mutual effect of the growth of Internet (Cole, 2009) 1.2 STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM Generally, in real world, an increasing competition from other channel had caused the number of traditional travel agents nearly decrease (Buhalis, 2003). The Internet is changing the industrys structure and the consumers behavior. Widely used of technology in tourism industry has affect the operation of the travel agencies in Malaysia. The usage of Internet by travelers has decreased the number of travel agencies sales in Malaysia. Besides that, Internet also has caused the high street travel agencies to close, thus creating job losses within the businesses (Anon, 2010). Many studies have looked into The Internet Travel Industry: What Consumers Should Expect and Need to Know, and Options for a Better Marketplace (Harrell Associates, 2002), Travel Agents vs. Online Booking: Tackling the Shortcomings of Nowadays Online Tourism Portals (Bogdanovych, Berger, Simoff Carles Sierra, n.d), Evaluating the Adoption and Use of Internet-based Marketing Information Systems to Improve Marketing Intelligence : The Case of Tourism SMEs in Jordan, AL-allak, 2010), Attitudes Towards Internet Use Among Travel Agencies In Greece (Vasiliki, Costas Savvas) and Travel Agents Fight A Losing Battle With the Internet (World Airline News, 2008). Unfortunately, there is no specific study that evaluates or observes on the factors that lead to the methods of sustaining the travel agencies operation in Malaysia regarding on the technology advancement. 1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES 1) To identify the factors that capable to sustain the operation of travel agencies in Malaysia 2) To identify whether the performance or sales of travel agency are affected by the uses of technology such as Internet or not. 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION 1) What are the factors that can sustain the operation of travel agencies in Malaysia? 2) Does the performance or sales of travel agency are affected by the uses of technology such as Internet? 1.5 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Independent variables Dependent variable Sustainability factors: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Human Touch à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Negotiation Power à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Interpersonal Skills à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Niche Market Travel agencys operation Figure 1: Proposed framework for the study 1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY The scope of the study is using the travel agencies around the Klang Valley area. All the travel agencies that took part in this study offers wide-range of services and products in their company. These travel agencies have been selected according to their location that located in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Most of the travel agencies are located in Kuala Lumpur. 1.7 SIGNIFANCE OF THE STUDY This study will basically benefit few categories of organizations that play important key roles in the tourism industry. Firstly, the government bodies such as the Ministry of Tourism, Tourism Malaysia and travel agencies in Malaysia. Secondly, this study will benefit the educational institution especially academicians and students in the tourism line. Therefore, it is hoped that this study can act as a guide and reference in future studies. There might be some filed in this study that is not investigate thoroughly due to constraint of time and funding and therefore it is welcome for any future researcher to examine those intended field. 1.8 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY For this study, we were using online survey. In order to deliver the questionnaires, we need to use an email. We took the email address of travel agencies from MATTA website, MOTOUR website and also their own website, however, some of the emails are not valid. This problem leads to the difficulty in collecting the information and giving us some difficulties in processing the result. Other than that, some of travel agencies did not give cooperation to us. They were not answering the questionnaires even though we already stated that all information are confidential and only use for study purposes. Lack of the cooperation and resources limit the researchers to gain extra information to enhance the study. 1.9 SUMMARY This chapter has presented the background of the research and research problem, outlining the research objectives and questions relevant to the research topic. This chapter also covered the scope of the study together with the importance in conducting the research. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 INTRODUCTION This study aims to discover the factors that can make the travel agencies in Malaysia sustain its operation in this tourism industry. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, literatures regarding the sustainability factors will be examine. 2.1 HUMAN TOUCH According to a professor of psychology, Dacher Keltner from a University of California, Berkeley, he says that, touch is our richest means of emotional expression. The researcher found out that, touch interconnects in ways that words cannot (Moll, 2012). In retail store settings, concisely touching customers has been shown to rise the consumers shopping times, store valuations and purchase volumes (Lynn, Le, Sherwyn, 1998). According to Jochman (2009) in his article title The Benefit of Human Touch, he said that the quantity of body contact plays an important role in peoples physical growth and mental as infants and in our happiness as an adults as shown by the scientists. Human touch has experience of working with banks, credit unions, insurers and other financial service providers to increase awareness of how service excellence can have a dramatic impact on their bottom line (Anon, 2012). A service representative asking the right questions and being sensitive to a customers needs can make all the difference between the sale of a financial product and the loss of that business to a competitor (Anon, 2012). In the years of computer-generated workplaces, where e-mail, teleconferencing and fax machines increase, something is missing that American business people need to close a deal the human touch (Seaberry, 2000). In other words, handshake and looking at each others eyes are still needed by the business people. According to James J. Green (2012) in his article, he said that the personal touch-the person-to-person touch-that you offer to your clients the one that distinguishes you. He added that talking to your peers, in person, provides you with perceptions that you cannot get electronically. Individuals play an important role in any business relationship because it is actually managed by individuals (Nguyen Nguyen, 2011). In manufacturer-distributor relationships, personal interactions talk about the communication at the individual level between distributors and manufacturers vital contact people (Ulaga, 2003). Furthermore, research has shown that personal interaction can play a critical role in distributors valuations of suppliers performance (Ulaga, 2003). As said by Kaufman (2012), automation is vital for growing and speeds up service in many industries. However, he added that when individual care or courtesy is required, customers require contact with real people. Once human energy fl ows and connects, good things can get completed and you can increase customer experience to your advantage (Kaufman, 2012). Scholars in marketing and organizational behavior are present giving increasing attention to the personal interaction among the customer and the employee on the frontline of service businesses (Mattsson, 1994). The personal interaction is recognized to be one of the important subjects in business and industrial marketing, both in terms of practice and theory (Mainela Ulkuniemi, 2012). Mainela and Ulkuniemi (2012) also stated in their journal that, personal interaction is also required to exchange social values and it may weaken the involvement of price in determining the behavior of the two parties. According to Pinnington and Scanlon (2009), business relationships are actually managed by individuals and there is extensive personal interaction in any business relationship (Pinnington Scanlon, 2009). Research has shown that a lot of companies are moving from transactional separate relations to relational ones (Nguyen Nguyen, 2011). In addition, Tho D. Nguyen, Trang T.M. Nguyen (201 1) said that, committed relationships are among the most durable because they are difficult for competitors to comprehend, to duplicate, or to relocate. Thus, scholars and practitioners have agreed that two-way relationships between buyers and sellers represent a source of competitive advantage (Nguyen Nguyen, 2011). Travel agent might look similar to a profession of the past, just like elevator operators and milkmen, however they are not merely hanging on, certain of them are successful. In actual fact, the February/March topic of Shop Smart magazine has a story on travel agents, saying that they are a lot better than online travel services (Williams, 2008). In the article title Travel agents: Hong Kongers prefer the real thing, Hong Kong travelers blame the online trend and continue to choose for humans when booking vacations (Li, 2012). Li (2012) also said that, Hong Kong is not a huge city; it is appropriate for people to make straight contact with travel agents as they are the expertise and backing that an offline travel adviser can convey additional value to the holiday. Travel agents will make sure that you will have an incredible experience on your trip. They are excited and will show their enthusiasm in helping you, their clients, have the best vacation possible (Bow, 2012). Travel profe ssionals are individually invested in seeing your trip come to be a success trip. This personal interaction with existent, live agents undermines the frequent dull experience of doing it yourself online (Bow, 2012). As soon as you book a trip or a holiday with a travel agent, you create a personal as well as a business rapport with that travel agent. If something goes incorrect, your travel agent is your personal representative who has an entrusted concern in resolving the problem to your satisfaction (Morris, 2012). According to Geoff Williams (2008), if you are afraid that you will need to change your flight or your travel plans at the last minute, a travel agent might be capable to talk to an airline directly and will save you away from those worries and stresses. Even though growing numbers of people turning to technology, specialists on both sides of the bureau are saying that there will always be a space for the human touch (The Syedney Morning Herald, 2007). Wherever travel agents remain incomparable is in their capability to offer a personal service. Naisbitt (2001) refers to it as high-touch, the antidote to high-tech. Moreover, it is becoming increasingly evident that agencies will need a high-touch high-tech strategy to satisfy the customers of the future (Naisbitt, 2001). A website cannot provide what the travel agent can offer such offering help, advice and also that personal touch to your travel planning experiences (McNally, 2007). According to the technology advisor Mary O Haver, the experience that travel agent has is part of the personal touch that travel agents can offer. Besides that, according to Hoffman (2012) who is an online travel expert and managing director of the worlds largest online travel agency, expedia.com.au, peo ple will always like to walk into a store and get personal service. He also said that, the more complex the trip, the more cooperative an experienced agent will be. He continued that, an agent can guide an inexperienced traveler over foreign travel or travel to exotic destinations. When travel in less developed tourism destination, the travel agents may have more knowledge of travel about that destination (Morris, 2012). Complicated arrangements like various destinations on one ticket or group travel might turn into difficult and an agent with experience can help (Morris, 2012). According to Olmsted (2012) in his article, between the several main advantages of high-powered agents carry to the table is individual connections and influence. If you have problems while you remain away, your travel agent is there to help you in resolving your concerns. If you make a booking with a travel agency, you are less likely to experience flight, city, or accommodation changes by the tour company, as they know the agent will be there to stand behind you (Travel Cafà © Inc, 2012). If you have at present reserved your trip but before you go to travel you want to adjust some details, your travel agency can assist you by get all the required steps complete, leaving you without the difficulty and confusion (McNally, 2007). Travel agencies take care of all travel particulars form reserving tickets to booking hotels that can give the tourist sufficient time to plan the travel (McNally, 2007). According to Donvan Lieberman (2011), the human touch that makes travel agencies different is when something goes wrong with our trip; we have someone to call or refer to solve the problem. Compared to persons who booked their accommodation or flight tickets online, there was no one for them to refer to help them resolve that situation. Secondly, according to them, travel agents are giving services by giving real information or their personal experience on the destination spots they send people to. They can also give travel tips that maybe useful where we cannot get them from online information. If a person booked online, if there is any mistakes happen during their bookings, they will have to carry the burden for themselves. But, using by the travel agents, they will do anything in order to personalize the needs and wants of their customer (Travel Cafà © Inc, 2011). Besides that, the travel agents are giving their specialized expertise that an individual does not have, or might fo rget during a trip. For example, visas, insurance, currency exchange and also custom regulation of a destination (Cole, 2009). Travel agents can help you to arrange and organize any compulsory official papers that you possibly will need in order to travel outside of the country (McNally, 2007). Rand McNally (2007) added that, travel agents know the necessary documents that you may need for your traveling such as visa and they can direct you to your local passport office too. Furthermore, travel agent can give extra services that an individual cannot get from online booking. One of the example is they have the ability to source and different travel experience and help to book hard booked restaurant (Talwar, 2011). Other than that, when you call with any problems during your trip, an online travel agency is not going to pick-up the phone but then a travel agent will remains to give you that personal care even though you are away (McNally, 2007). Building that personal relationship pro vides you the assurance that you can reliance on your agents expertise and no matter the situation, they will be around to assist you to find a resolution (Bow, 2012). Additionally, if you should have any enquiries after booking your trip, you know exactly how to contact your travel agent and can escape the uncertain FAQ section on a website (McNally, 2007). The services that serve with the human touch and worth deal will make the travel agency retain in the business. According to Geoff Williams in his article, he said that as soon as the tourism space getting bigger, you are going to have a choice in the middle of a thinking, helpful individual and a capable unfeeling internet site that does not surely care if you travel on Saturn whereas your baggage bursts into flames on Mercury. As for that, who are you going to trust? Smart Money magazine summarized the whole thing moderately well on the cover of the June 2007 edition. FORGET ONLINE! TRAVEL AGENTS GET BETTER DEALS. 2.2 NEGOTIATION POWER In general, negotiation mean bargaining process between two or more parties seeking to discover a common ground and reach an agreement to settle a matter of mutual concern or resolve a conflict (Business Dictionary.com). According to Fisher Ury in their book Getting to YES: Negotiating Agreement without Giving In, negotiating is a basic way in getting what you want from other people (1981). While in Oxford Dictionary, negotiation means discussion is aimed at reaching an agreement. In Women Are Getting Even (WAGE) website, they interpret negotiation as conversation between two parties in order to make an exchange. According to Rusk (2006), the meaning of negotiation is discussion intended to produce an agreement. It also can be referring as common solutions that used to make a decisions and settle down the problems (Moore, 2012), a process which is two or more parties attempt to agree on the rate of goods and services that they exchange (Robbins Judge, 2003). Conflict and negotiatio n are a fact of everyday work-life, yet it often produces anxiety (Cutts, 2012). The UK Border Agency has announced that there are still technical problems with online booking service (Kelly, 2012). This statement shows that sometimes online booking faced a problem such as lost record (Kirschbaum, 2009), security issues (Fane, 2010) and technical issues (Scoot, 2012). There are problems that faced by customer when they used online booking system. Despite the fact that all the respondents (except for one) use computers almost every day, 14% believe that booking online is not securing in general (Bogdanovych et al, 2006). Conflict happen because of these problems. Conflict happen when people did not agree with the issue, it will create a friction or tension between that individual or groups (Nahavandi, 1999). Negotiation is a process that examining the facts of situation, exposing the interest of both parties involved and bargaining to solve the conflict as many as possible (Moore, 2012). Negotiation permeates the interaction of almost everybody in the organization (Robbins Judge, 2003). According to Lucas (2008), conflict might occur because of differing perception, inadequate or poor communication and also contrary expectations. These problems often happen when dealing with customer especially in travel agency. In tourism industry, negotiation is an important process to gain a mutual agreement of something, especially for the travel agencies. It is crucial for them to confirm what their customer wants and need. Through negotiation conflict between travel agency and customer can be reduced. Negotiating through areas of conflict can often lead to win-win situations agreeable to parties, reducing ill felling and conflict (Queensland Government, 2011). Travel agents have the negotiation power because they have maximum choice to offer to their clients (Travel Cafà © Inc 2011). This means they have variety of choices that they can get from their travel suppliers and they can give us the best deal with best value of possible. Online booking lack of firsthand knowledge and rarely gives customer opportunity to speak with someone knowledgeable about service that they are booking (Morelock, 2012). The clients and travel agents can assists us to get what we need in our vacation and help us to get the best offer. Online booking allows customer to make all travel plans on the Internet means they can do it any time of the day or night at home or while theyre on their lunch break at the office (Oakley, 2012). It is true when we are doing booking online we can make a booking everywhere and anytime, where it will be more convenient to us, but we cannot negotiate the price of the tourism product that we wish to book. If we are negotiating with travel agents, we have the chance to get lower prices as possible. Price negotiation usually occurs during purchasing of materials or supplies (Francois, 2012). For example, if a travel package to Cameron Highlands costs about RM300 for two nights, the clients can negotiate to get the lower price and finally they will get the offer around RM250 only. With negotiations, both parties will receive their own benefits and it is a win-win situation (Rusk, 2006). When customer asks an agent to negotiate, means customer are essentially asking the agent to subsidize t heir vacation (Brock, 2009) but through online system, customer had no change to negotiate with an agent because the price is fixed. The Marriott International, Hilton Hotels, Sheraton Hotels Resorts and others was charged in San Francisco Federal Court on charges conspired to use their market dominance to fix the hotel prices with travel websites like Travelocity, Booking.com and Expedia, a subsidiary of Priceline.com From this case we can see that customer cannot negotiate the price because the price is fixed. The aim of the negotiations is to decide the price that is acceptable for both parties (Francois, 2012) From price negotiation process it becomes bargaining process. Negotiations commonly follow a process of positional bargaining (Cutts, 2012). Oxford Online Dictionary give two interpretation of bargaining, the first is an agreement between two or more people or groups as to what each will do for the other. The second is a thing bought or offered for sale much more cheaply than usual or expected. There are two types of negotiation which are distributive bargaining and integrative bargaining (Robbins Judge, 2003). Distributive bargaining also called claiming value, zero-sum or win-lose bargaining is a competitive strategy that is used to decide how to distribute a fixed resource such as money (Spangler, 2003). Honeyman (2012), interpret integrative bargaining as one of platform which party try to understand interests of another party, on the expectation that it will helping the opponent to create solution as responsive its own concerns. According to Tewart (2012), many times people say they dont like to negotiate (bargaining) yet, they still shop around and never pay full price. The word bargaining here does not only mean price negotiation, it is a much differentiated and broader term (Management Study Guide, 2012). Customer also can bargain to build his or her own trip with or without help from a customer care executive (Agarwal, 2012), asking whether travel agency offer travel insurance (trip Travel Responsibility Informed Protected, 2012) and a customer can seek redress under certain circumstances commonly referred as the right to repair, replacement or refund (Government of South Australia, 2011). These are things that customer can always bargain with travel agencies. The freedom for the customer is restricted when they make booking through online system. Customer cannot confirm their specific requirement when make the online booking through the hotel reservation system (Vyas, 2010). For example, when they make booking through hotel reservation system and they have something that they dont understand, there is no place for them to raise the questions. According to Lloyd, booking online doesnt have individual to deal with booking process, it leaf to customer to read and understand the complicated terms and conditions. One of the advantages of booking direct with the hotel, by phone or email, is that customer can request a specific room of the hotel and they cannot normally do that online or with an agent (Trend, 2010) According to Tewart (2012), most people act in their best interest and most people who say they dont like negotiating, actually still want to. This statement shows that customers still love to negotiate and online booking system prevent them from doing it. Negotiation is needed in order to secure the resources required for successful project completion (Evans Lindsay, 2008). Through negotiating win-win solutions with customers, it will not only give your company the best chance to succeed but will also create relation between customer and your company for future sales opportunities (Douglas, 2003). Negotiation also can increase clarity about the problem, can lead to innovative breakthroughs and new approaches, involvement in conflict can sharpen approaches to bargaining, influencing, competing and also can focus more attention on basic issues and lead to solution (Wertheim,1996). Solving problems that arise in negotiations is an integral part of collective bargaining. The first task is to recognize what is the problem that occurs and the secondly, is to decide what strategy should be taken to solve the problem (Anon, 2012). According to Goodale (2007), negotiation is one of the most important parts in business as well as one of the most interesting parts of professional purchasing